The steamiest places on the planet are getting warmer. Conservative estimates suggest that tropical areas can expect temperature increases of 3 degrees Celsius by the end of this century. Does global warming spell doom for rainforests? Maybe not.

The Nature Conservancy has brokered the largest debt-for-nature swap in history -- $12.6 million in debt will be forgiven and $26 million will be provided to finance tropical forest conservation in Costa Rica over the next 16 years.